Norwood Junction rail accident

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The Norwood Junction railway crash occurred on May 1, 1891, when a cast iron under-bridge fractured under an express train from Brighton, UK.

The locomotive crossed the bridge safely with most of its carriages intact, but the brake van fell into the gap on the bridge. There were no casualties, apart from a dislocated ankle. However, the train was for first class business men only, and raised a furore in Parliament. The accident drew attention to the weakness of cast iron structures in under-bridges, especially as many had been installed in the 1830's and 1840's when locomotives were much lighter.

[edit] Causes

The single girder that cracked was seriously flawed with a very large blowhole in the flange and web. The subsequent investigation by General Hutchinson (who had been involved in the Tay Rail Bridge inquiry) recommended that all such bridges on the Southern network be inspected. The task fell to Sir John Fowler, who recommended that many be replaced by wrought iron structures.

The accident led the Board of Trade to issue a circular requesting details of all cast iron under-bridges on the UK network. There were thousands of such bridges, and most were gradually replaced so as to reassure the travelling public. However, there are still many thousands of cast iron beam over-bridges remaining today, many with very low weight restrictions.